Virtually every engine today utilizes and oil lubrication system to reduce or eliminate friction between internal moving components. These oil lubrication systems typically incorporate an oil filter that continuously filters the circulating engine oil. The filtration process extends the useful life of the lubricating oil.
The typical oil filter is of the spin on cartridge variety that includes internal filter media and an internally-threaded aperture for attachment to an externally-threaded oil outlet that protrudes from a low point on the engine block. The circulating oil exits the oil outlet, enters an interior circumferential chamber of the oil filter, passes through the internal filter media into an outer axial chamber, exits the oil filter through one of several oil passageways formed concentrically around the internally-threaded aperture, and back into the engine lubrication system via one of several oil inlets formed concentrically around the externally-threaded oil outlet. The installed oil filter thus functions like a sieve by capturing and retaining oil pollutants such as metal particles.
The oil filter is required to be changed along with the engine oil after a certain number of engine operating hours (or vehicle miles). Once the used engine oil is drained from the engine by a technician, the used oil filter is spun off of the externally-threaded oil outlet and a new filter is spun on and is tightened preferably to the point of being “finger tight,” but no more, thereby allowing for removal at the end of the next oil cycle without the need for a filter wrench. Occasionally, however, the technician fails to tighten the filter properly or, even if tightened properly, the sealing ring of the filter may not be properly seated against the oil filter base on the engine. Because the engine (or other machine to which the filter is attached) generates a significant amount of vibration, the filter, even a properly seated filter, may become inadvertently loosened resulting in rapid loss of the lubricating oil and, in many cases, catastrophic engine failure.
As in so many areas of vehicle technology there is always room for improvements related to the design of an engine lubricating system for use in an conjunction with internal combustion engine. Particularly, it would be advantageous to provide an oil filter for such a system that has an anti-rotation system to prevent the inadvertent loosening of an oil filter once in place.